`The Second World War dwarfs in scale the scanty memoirs of great figures of the past. The imagination boggles at the task of finding a just events would have made the narrative great even if the writer had not had Churchill`s gift of style. But the style matches the occasion.` Times Literary Supplement. Churchill`s history of the Second World War is, and will remain, the definitive work. Lucid, dramatic, remarkable, both for its breadth and sweep and for its sense of personal involvement, it is universally acknowledged as a magnificent historical reconstruction and an enduring work of literature. This edition is Churchill`s own abridgement of his original six-volume history. `That the acclamation has been even greater than might have been anticipated is the measure of his unique achievement - to have given the authority and the majesty of history to the stuff of his own times.` Daily Telegraph. `With superb artistry he recreates